


Inferno

by WindandSky (VerityXxX)



Category: Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (TV 2018), Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: AU, Ambrose is always done, But it Will Burn, F/M, Hell is going to be much longer than one episode, Prudence is a gem who loves her sisters/family, Rewrite of season 3, slowburn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-02
Updated: 2020-02-01
Packaged: 2021-02-28 05:01:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Underage
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22518178
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VerityXxX/pseuds/WindandSky
Summary: Sabrina's journey to hell isn't quite as smooth as it might be in the show and when she finally gets in she has a long way to go before she will be able to find and rescue Nick whose been struggling in hell with the devil itself inside him. Re-write of Season 3
Relationships: Dr. Cerberus/Hilda Spellman, Faustus Blackwood/Zelda Spellman, Harvey Kinkle/Rosalind "Roz" Walker, Nicholas Scratch/Sabrina Spellman, Prudence Night/Ambrose Spellman, The Dark Lord | Satan/Mary Wardwell | Madam Satan | Lilith, Theo Putnam/Robin, Zelda Spellman/Mary Wardwell | Madam Satan | Lilith
Comments: 3
Kudos: 25





	Inferno

Sabrina couldn’t help but find it annoying to sit in class behind a desk. Ever since the show down against her father which had ended up with Nick being trapped in hell she had been itching to act. To actually do something instead of just attending school and waiting for something to happen because that’s all it felt like she had done in the last month stuck in Baxter High whilst her aunt rebuilt the academy. 

“Class,” Miss Wardwell began tremulously—she might not be Lilith anymore, but the poor woman had never recovered from the shock of whatever had happened to her. “As you all might be aware, we will be studying poetry in English for this term and whilst I planned to focus on Emily Dickenson, I found myself increasingly drawn to Dante’s Inferno.”

“Do you know anything about this,” Roz whispered to Sabrina nervously leaning across the gap between their desks. 

Sabrina shook her head, “I have no idea. Lilith didn’t even tell me that she was going to bring Miss Wardwell back let alone give me a debrief about whatever psychological trauma she might be suffering from.”

“Quiet girls,” Miss Wardwell said dropping a worn copy of Dante’s Inferno on Sabrina’s desk as she made her way around the classroom distributing the second-hand books. Sabrina didn’t know in what cupboard she must have found the book as she’d never heard of a teacher at Baxter High ever teaching Inferno. 

Sabrina picked up her copy carefully. It was significantly more worn than anyone else’s with marks on the spine and numerous pages dogeared marking the previous owner’s interest in the book. She flicked it open to see strong cursive pencil writing annotating the lines of poetry. “Inferno tells the story of Dante’s descent into Hell as he travels to Heaven,” Miss Wardwell explained. “So, I’d like you all to discuss what hell means to you and your interpretation of it in groups.”

“Dad,” Sabrina said dryly but she wasn’t really joking but that didn’t stop the others from snickering. “But honestly we need to work out how we are going to get there. It’s been over a month and I feel like we’ve gotten nowhere.” They had initially been incredibly motivated, and Sabrina had almost singlehandedly read half of the library at the academy of unseen arts whilst Roz and Theo had scoured the internet and the mortal library for clues. However, after a few promising leads any clues had dried up along with their motivation.

Harvey leant back in his chair until it hit the desk behind him, “Are we sure we still want to get to hell. Like this is an entire book about how horrible hell actually is and we are planning to go there to get someone who might not actually want to...” Roz shot Harvey a warning glance causing him to trail off and Sabrina couldn’t help but feel a wave of hurt at what Harvey was saying.

“This is Nick,” Theo said quietly, and Sabrina felt a wave of reassurance from Theo backing her up. “We all know that he’s important to Sabrina and saved all of us from literal Satan by sacrificing himself.” 

“Besides we promised Sabrina we would help her when she came back to Baxter High,” Roz continued. “Unless you want her to go to hell all by herself.” 

Harvey looked down and Sabrina could tell he still wasn’t completely satisfied with their response, but he also wasn’t willing to take on all of his friends as he knew there would be no way that he wouldn’t end up losing. “Thanks,” she whispered to both Roz and Theo for backing her up.

“Where are you in your discussion?” Miss Wardwell asked coming round to their group of chairs which had all migrated towards each other and 

“Just discussing how to get to hell,” Sabrina said off the cuff not really thinking about what she was actually saying until she had said it. Had she given too much away—Miss Wardwell didn’t actually know anything though.

Miss Wardwell smiled placidly brushing a strand of hair out of her face as she leant against Sabrina’s desk, “It’s an interesting question that—everyone obsesses about how to get to heaven but never considers the journey to hell. Even in Inferno it is just a part of the Dante’s journey from hell to heaven.” She paused and her distant, yet piercing eyes focussed on Sabrina. “The myths always speak of gates to hell but also of a back door which is more forgiving of people who might not actually be dead. Regardless you’d need a guide, or you’ll be wandering for years.”

“There’s a backdoor to hell,” Sabrina asked curiously. She hadn’t come across the idea of a backdoor to hell allowing her entrance in any of her reading. 

“It depends,” Miss Wardwell answered. “In the Greek myths Orpheus sings to the rocks to make them open. But that’s just a fairy tale—there’s no way of getting out of our hell once you are there.” There was a cold edge to her voice and Sabrina couldn’t help but wonder where it would be.

Sabrina looked down and she could feel her head literally spinning as she came up with ideas. She’d sung for her father to trick them and maybe she could do the same thing again and sing her way into hell somehow. It wasn’t much but a better idea than anything else that she had come up with recently and if there was any way into hell, she’d take it.

She glanced up and waited a few moments until she was confident that Miss Wardwell had moved on before turning to her friends, “Did you hear what she said? What if we can pull an Orpheus and find the back door. Maybe by looking to get back through the gates we’ve been going all the wrong way.”

“Sabrina, what are you thinking about?” Harvey asked and Sabrina couldn’t help but feel frustrated at his obliviousness.

Roz scrunched up her face in confusion, “How are you going to find this back entrance. It could be anywhere—what are the odds that it would be in Greendale.”

The bell rung and Sabrina felt herself jump in her seat. Sabrina pushed herself to her feet quickly pushing the copy of Inferno into her school bag and she swung it over her shoulder, “Who knows but everything seems to be in Greendale nowadays.”

She heard a murmured protest from the others and Theo begin to ask her a question, “I’ll talk to you tomorrow okay. I need to talk to my aunts.”

…

Prudence brushed back red curls out of her face, and she fought back the urge to itch at the unfamiliar fabric covering her arms. The Spanish music was playing loudly, and she felt her hips sway distantly to the beat. She took a flute of cheap prosecco from one of the waiters as she zeroed in on her target.

His head was as dark as she remembered, and his face was as worn as could be expected. Just looking at him she felt a wave of hatred run through her and she pushed through preventing herself from turning back and away from him. She stopped a few feet away from him directly in his line of sight and she started to dance—carefully at first but she could feel his eyes on her and eventually his hands on her hips.

She looked up meeting Ambrose’s eyes from where he was sitting across the bar drinking rum slowly watching them. He nodded slightly and Prudence rotated where she stood to meet the eyes of her father. 

He was watching her carefully and if it wouldn’t make her retch to admit lustfully. She had chosen a good glamour—it was stolen from a girl in Riverdale with hair more crimson than her own Dorcas’s and it had slid on as easily as one of her lace gloves.

“Do you want to continue this upstairs,” she whispered breathily into his ear swallowing down the bile. 

His hand tightened around her waist and she saw his eyes darken before he turned pulling her around with him. She followed him quickly slipping her hand under her dress to the blade she had strapped to her thigh. The blade had been dark against this girl’s pale skin and Prudence always liked the danger the possibility of being cut provided even though she knew nothing would actually happen to her. 

She slipped his hotel key out of his pocket and flitted ahead of him giggling breathily as she reached the door whose number was carved on the wooden key ring. Behind him she could see Ambrose just around the corner waiting and watching for her to make her final move.

“What are you doing you little minx,” Blackwood said accelerating towards her without actually breaking into a run. “Are you being impatient girl?”

Prudence lent against the door refusing to indulge the anger that brimmed within her, “Maybe,” She wound a crimson strand of hair around her finger. “I just want you.” To die Prudence added in her head hating herself for what’s she’s saying.  
Before she realised, he was upon her and pressing her up against the wall hard and Prudence thought the urge to push him off her, “Why don’t we go inside instead of doing this here?” She pressed the key into his open hand hard leaving a mark upon his skin.

He took it and opened the door striding in leaving Prudence to scurry in after him. She glanced back looking for Ambrose and despite not seeing him she left the door open ajar confident he would be there soon. Her father had crossed the room and was pouring two glasses of bourbon for the pair of them and Prudence could feel herself itching to act.

“Is one for me,” she asked adapting the higher breathier voice that playing the part of this mortal girl required. 

Father Blackwood looked at her disdainfully but there was something she couldn’t pinpoint in his eyes that wasn’t familiar to her despite the fact he was her father, “Of course.”

Prudence sidled over taking the glass of bourbon sipping on it delicately without actually swallowing any. She had drunk enough already, and she couldn’t afford to jeopardise her aim. Behind her she heard the door shut distantly and the slightest sound of what must have been Ambrose’s boots against the floorboard. 

“Is that you,” Father Blackwood asked, and Prudence couldn’t help but want to grin thinking about Ambrose and her beheading him. “You did close the door, didn’t you?” 

“I can’t remember,” Prudence lied. “I didn’t check the door though I just presumed it would have close.” Five seconds until Ambrose would attack and this all would be over.

Father Blackwood stood up moving towards the door and Prudence grabbed her knife from where she had stashed it taking advantage of his distraction, “The door is closed so it must just have been a draft.”

“Of course,” Prudence agreed. “You know I think I’m ready.”

Father Blackwood didn’t have time say anything. By the time he had come around the corner Prudence was ready for him. He stepped backwards but before he could cast a spell or try to work out a way to escape Ambrose was there. Prudence watched coldly as Ambrose skewered her father on his blade. However, as the body fell its features changed. Her father’s dark hair had turned a mousey blonde with his frame lengthening as though it was being stretched into that of a lean and limby teenager. 

“It’s one of his Judas boys,” Ambrose said, and Prudence felt a wave of regret looking at the boy. She’d grown up alongside the Judas boys after she had been taken in by father Blackwood competing with them in class since she was just a child. She would always beat them back then.

Prudence pushed the boy’s eyes closed gently with two fingers, “I’m so sick of this chasing him and killing. I just want it to be over, but it can’t be until he’s dead and my siblings are home.” She was tired of this hunt and tired of being alone with no one to turn to save Ambrose and she was tired of killing the boys she had grown up with who Blackwood clearly viewed as expendable. 

“I know,” Ambrose said crouching to her level as though she was a wild animal. She liked that. “But we will find him, and we will make him pay for everything that he’s done to us and the people we love. I promise.”

Prudence pushed herself to her feet retrieving her dagger from where she had dropped, “Get your sword out of his body we are going to make him pay a hundred-fold for everyone he has hurt. He’d be lucky if I’d just kill him.” She turned back to face Ambrose who was still beside the body of the judas boy—he must have known him they had both been a part of the Blackwood’s deranged cult.

“Come on,” she repeated. “We need to find another way.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope everyone liked this/are interested in this continuing. I have loads of ideas for how I'd like this to go drawing off of Greek myths, the musical Hadestown and obviously Dante's inferno for Sabrina's journey to hell with her firneds which esp at the beginning will have some parallels to Ambrose and Prudence's own quest to find Blackwood. Please read and comment if you'd like to see more as it's the only way I can know if people are interested.


End file.
